|PS 3515 
E435 



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I heCow-pam 

v_ross 

l/arl lend 



erson 






i^opyriillit 1914 hy 
J. Darl Henderson 



©C! .44001 14 
MAY 24 1915 

TIIK fAl)Mt7S PRKSS 
i.Al.y.>.BrRU. III.. 

1 Ui t ■ 



The Cow-path 

Cross tne Eighty 

Do you remember — away oack tnere — 
^A' nen you and I ran everywhere. 
Without a Durden, or worry or care. 
Over that jolly old Prairie-land 
>^e called Xnc Eigfnty, so close at nand? 
A.nd no\v the breezes our races tanned — 
As we followed the nooks 
A.nd tne niUs, and tne crooks 
Of the cow^-path cross the eighty ? 




'Just you and I, and a dog, and a smile;" 



A score ana a naif of years since then. 
But I can see every hill and glen, 
A.ncl creek, ana turn m tne path ; and -wnen 
We used to scamper, ah, many a mile ! 
Just you and I, and a aog, and a smile ; 
Wnen the whole day long was a bit of a 
■wnile — 

As we follow^ed the nooks 
And tne nills, and tne crooks 
Or tne cow-path cross the eig'nty. 



O wasn't it jolly to pile out o' teJ 
nV ken tne sun was makin the sky all 

red — 
And to w^atck tke calves a gettm' fed? 
And wasn t the w^orld all cheery and 

bright — 
And didn't a fellow^'s heart get light 
With a whole day s frolic and fun in 

sight — 

As we thought of the nooks 
And the hills, and the crooks 
Of the cow^-path cross the eighty? 



^iVitk tlie cows all paileJ, and tne treak- 

rast done. 
And tke calves penned up — O wasn t 

it tun 
A turnin tne cows out — one by one ? 
We sometimes tno t -we could see em smile 
As tney turned up tne lane in rank and file. 
To tne prairie-land corner — a Dit or a 

mile — 

\Vnere tney took to the nooks 
And the mils, and the crooks 
Or tne cow-patn cross tne ei^nty. 




"They passed by the Little Red School House there' 



Tkey passed ty the Little Red Scnool 

House there 
On Fullerton s corner ; don t you kno^v 

where ? 
^^ as there ever a campus that looked so 

fair? 
Or college, or Varsity , any place made, 
Xnat the little red school didn t lay in 

the shade ? 
Was there ever such beautiful scenery 

laid 

As we saw m the nooks 
And the hills, near the crooks 
Of the CO w^ -path cross the eighty? 



Can t you see tne old cows as they took to 

tne trail 
^^itk a Kappy side-kick and a s-witcli of 

tKe tail — 
And a toss of the Kead? And did ever 

tKey rail 
Xo stop for a ^vmle in tne tall grass that 

grew 
K.ound the little frogf-pond, don t you 

kno-w, in the slough. 
And dabole their noses ahout m the dew^ ? 
Xhen take to the nooks 
And the hills, and the crooks 
Of the cow^-path cross the eighty. 



Xnere was "Spot, and "Old Qrindle — 

tKe faitKful bell-cow. 
And "Line-tacK and "Boss ' — I can see 

em rignt now^ 
Just as plain as can be — and rememDer 

just now 
The bell used to clatter and clank and ringf, 
And now "w^c would -whistle, and yell, 

and smg 
As we -went on our errand at ev ning to 

bring 

1 ne cows rrom tne nooks 
And tKe kills, ty tke crooks 
Or tne cow-patn cross the eigkty. 





'Where -we fished with a crooked pin fast to a pole ; " 



I m wondering, fellow^s, if you can see 
Xne ]olly ola prairie tnat used to dc ; 
A.na tne path, and tne creek, and tne pond, 

an, me ! 
And the strawberry patch — and tne old 

swimmm -hole 
Wliere we risned Avitn a crooked pin fast 

to a pole ; 
Where we wearied tne body, out rested 

the soul — 

As we played m the nooks 
And the hills, and tne crooks 
Of tlie cow-path cross tlie eighty. 



And the tumble bee's nest! can t you 

near the mad buzz? 
I am sure I could go to the spot wnere 

it "wuz ; 
And a licKin don t nurt Kali as bad as it 

does 
Wben a bumble bee catcnes you kind o 

off guard. 
And bits you so painfully bumble bee bard 
Xbat you wisb you were bome on tbe 

grass in tbe yard — 

And away from tbe nooks 
And tbe bills, and tbe crooks 
Of tbe cow-patb cross tbe eigbty. 



Just a ways up the draw from the bumble 

bee s nest 
Was tne strawberry patcb ; full o berries ; 

tne best 
Tnat ever w^ent back of a little boy's vest ; 
So juicy, and sweet, ana ricn witb tbat 

smell 
Tbat Nature put m era and rubbed m so 

well ; 
But tbe store-keeper now never bas em 

to sell 

Like we found in tbe nooks 
And tbe bills, near tbe crooks 
Of tbe cow^-patb cross tbe eigbty. 




"And don't you remember tKat cool bit o* shade 
A lonely, but good-natured willow tree made" 



A.n(l don't you rememter that cool Dit o' 

skaJe 
A lonely, but good-natured willo-w tree 

made 
By tne side or the creek, wnere we used 

to wade? — 
And tne ford just below^, and tne snaky 

foot-log; — 
And tne loud lonesome croak ox tnat 

impudent rrog 
Just near where ^ve crossed — you and I, 
and the dog — 

Gom home rrom tne nooks 
And tne hills, and the crooks 
Of the cow^-path cross the eighty? 



O it's sweet to loot back, fellows ; sweet, 

tbo' it's sad. 
To know I can never agfain oe a laa 
Just like I was tnen ; out tne ^ood times 

•we haa 
In tne jolly old prairie-land, long years 

ago. 
Where tne bees used to be, ana tne cro-ws 

used to crow^. 
Is a part of my life tkat I'll never let go ; 
For I loved the old nooks 
A.nd tne Kills, and tne crooks 
Of tke cow-patk cross tke eigkty. 



A few years ago, toys, I strolled back 

agam, 
A.na saw the same eighty we used to see 

then ; 
A.nd tne used-to-be hills, and tke used- 

to-te glen ; 
1 he s'w^iminin -hole, too, and the same 

muddy creek: 
But my throat kind o cnoked, boys, w^nen 

I tried to speak ; 
A.nd a tear kind o trickled do-wn over my 

cneek — 

For tbey ve plo-wed up tne nooks 
And tne mils, and tbe crooks 
Or the cow-patn cross tbe eigbty. 



